COPPER MOUNTAIN Mine holds official opening ceremony & releases new video update
VANCOUVER, Aug. 26, 2011 /CNW/ --
To view the Social Media Release, click here: http://smr.newswire.ca/en/copper-mountain-mining-corporation/copper-mountain-mine-holds-official-opening-ceremony
VANCOUVER, Aug. 26, 2011 /CNW/ - Copper Mountain Mining Corporation (TSX: CUM) (the 'Company' or 'Copper Mountain') is pleased to announce that the Official Opening Ceremony of the Copper
Mountain Mine was held on Thursday August 18th at the mine site. The
Copper Mountain Mine hosted about 1700 people from around the province
on a full day of mine tours, music and dignitary celebrations. People
were able to view the open pit mine in action via a specially built
lookout area that accommodated the highway buses, then the tour
participants were treated to a rare look inside the 35,000 tpd
concentrator building that was in operation. Tour participants
finished the day by returning to the large 5 bay truck shop that was
converted into a convention centre for the day where they were
entertained with music and a lunch of barbequed hotdogs and hamburgers
and then listened to the opening ceremonies. Dignitaries included the
Hon. Rich Coleman, Minister of Energy & Mines, Hon. Bill Barisoff
Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, Randy Maclean Princeton Mayor, as
well as senior executives of Mitsubishi Material Corporation that
travelled from Japan and the Company's senior executives.
It was noted during the ceremonies that Copper Mountain is the first
base metal mine to commence operations in British Columbia since 1998
and that the mine will directly employ 270 people from the town of
Princeton BC and surrounding areas and will have significant spinoff
benefits for the entire province.
Notable excerpts from speeches during the official opening ceremony are
presented below:
CEO & President of Copper Mountain Mining Corporation, Jim O'Rourke
'All of us at Copper Mountain are proud to be a part of this momentous
occasion. A new mine in BC has been long overdue, and with the help of
Mitsubishi Materials Corporation and our employees, suppliers and
contractors, we have brought this mine from concept to reality. At
full production we will be producing over 105 million pounds of copper,
27,000 ounces of gold, and 350,000 ounces of silver per year. We want
to assure our stakeholders that we are off to a good start, but this is
only the beginning for the company. We look forward to a prosperous
future as the company grows on the momentum of this positive start.'
Princeton Mayor, Randy McLean
'The official opening of Copper Mountain Mine marks a great day in the
history of Princeton,' said McLean. 'The economic effect of a project
of this magnitude on a small community is remarkable; every facet of
our way of life has undergone a boost in morale. We are eternally
grateful to Copper Mountain Mining's Jim O'Rourke and the provincial
ministers who worked so hard to bring this project into production.'
Minister of Energy and Mines, Honarable Rich Coleman
'Congratulations to everyone involved with Copper Mountain and to the
community of Princeton. The provincial governmnet has worked hard to
encourage investment and development in the mining sector. The Copper
Mountain Mine will benefit both the regional economy and the entire
province'.
Update on Operations:
Mining is proceeding well at rates in the 140,000 tonne per day range.
Some teething delays have been experienced but programs are in progress
to optimize the mining operation.
The concentrator is operating at rates of about 90 percent of design
capacity. Tonnage through the SAG mill has been the limiting factor.
SAG mill perfomance has been disappointing and numerous changes have
been necessary to approach design capacity. Additional improvements are
scheduled at month end which are expected to allow the SAG
mill throughput to reach 100 percent of design. Capacity of the ball
mill circuit, flotation and dewatering circuits meet or exceed
expectations.
Concentrate trucks have been transporting concentrate to the storage
dock daily, with the first cargo ship scheduled to arrive at the port
before the end of the month of August. However due to port conjestion
in Vancouver it may not be loaded until September 2 or 3rd. The first
12,000 tonne ocean shipment will be sent to Mitsubishi Materials
Corporation's Onahama smelter in Japan for treatment and refinement.
The company will recognize revenue upon loading of the cargo in the
month of September.
A new road has been constructed to minimize distance and bypass travel
through Princeton, connecting the mine with highway #3, saving a total
of 40km in trip distance. The Company is now working with government
to get the transportation approval required to start utilizing this new
road for concentrate hauling.
New video update:
Today the company issued a Media Release through Canada News Wire, which
includes an updated video on the Copper Mountain Mine.
TO SEE VIDEO UPDATE ON THE COPPER MOUNTAIN MINE CLICK HERE
About Copper Mountain Mining Corporation:
Copper Mountain is a Canadian resource company managed by an experienced
team of professionals with a solid track record of exploration and
development success. The Company's shares trade on the Toronto Stock
Exchange under the symbol 'CUM'. Copper Mountain owns 75% and
Mitsubishi Materials Corporation owns 25% of the Copper Mountain
Mine. The 18,000 acre mine site is located 20 km south of the town of
Princeton in southern British Columbia. The Copper Mountain Mine has a
current resource of approximately 5 billion pounds of copper and
recently commenced production. Additional information is available on
the Company's web page at www.CuMtn.com.
On behalf of the Board of COPPER MOUNTAIN MINING CORPORATION
'Jim O'Rourke'
Jim O'Rourke
Chief Executive Officer
(Note: This release contains forward-looking statements that involve
risks and uncertainties. These statements may differ materially from
actual future events or results. Readers are referred to the documents,
filed by the Company on SEDAR at )(www.sedar.com)(, specifically the most recent reports which identify important risk
factors that could cause actual results to differ from those contained
in the forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation
to review or confirm analysts' expectations or estimates or to release
publicly any revisions to any forward-looking statement.)
Video with caption: 'The Copper Mountain Mine Video Update'. Video available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/cgi-bin/playback.cgi?file=20110826_C6441_VIDEO_EN_2539.mp4&posterurl=http://photos.newswire.ca/images/20110826_C6441_PHOTO_EN_2539.jpg&clientName=Copper%20Mountain%20Mining%20Corporation&caption=The%20Copper%20Mountain%20Mine%20Video%20Update&title=The%20Copper%20Mountain%20Mine%20Video%20Update%20
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Galina Meleger
Corporate Communications
604 682 2992 ext. 224
Galina@CuMtn.com
www.CuMtn.com
Rod Shier
Chief Financial Officer
604-682-2992 ext.222
Rod@CuMtn.com
www.CuMtn.com
Galina Meleger
Corporate Communications
604 682 2992 ext. 224
Galina@CuMtn.com
www.CuMtn.com
Rod Shier
Chief Financial Officer
604-682-2992 ext.222
Rod@CuMtn.com
www.CuMtn.com